


Amends and Atonements

by 2425constance



Category: The Last of Us (Video Games), the last of us part 2
Genre: Blood, Death, F/F, Gore, Slow Burn, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-18
Updated: 2020-10-29
Packaged: 2021-03-09 01:14:52
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,600
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27086155
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/2425constance/pseuds/2425constance
Summary: Don’t read if you don’t want tlou2 spoilers cause this will be full of em.The story begins from the beach, only both parties have no choice but to leave together. Ellie, Abby and Lev must work together to find the fireflies and put their differences and disagreements aside for the greater good.This is kind of my prediction for a sequel (only more gay). I’ve done a LOT of research in terms of geography so there will be location links and map screen caps to accompany from chapter 2 onwards and i’ve tried to keep the location aspect as close to the lou2 plot as possible (kudos if you get my username reference!).I don’t know how many chapters this will be but I’ll try and keep a pretty regular upload schedule.Planning on Ellie/Abby having some sort of physical or romantic relationship but it’ll be a very slow burn.
Relationships: Abby/Ellie (The Last of Us)
Comments: 11
Kudos: 56





	1. Santa Barbara

A stab of pain. Ellie clutched at her side, her blood soaked shirt clinging to her skin. She could smell the salt in the air, could feel the cold wind whip her face as she struggled to gently manoeuvre herself down the sandy dunes. Gunfire echoed in the distance behind her. With all this noise, the place would be swarming with infected in no time. She had to move. Although she was weak from her wounds and fatigue was weighing her down, she pushed forward as she’d done so many times before. Stumbling around tree roots and overgrowth she felt the weight of her backpack more than ever, her side throbbing more and more with every step. The further Ellie pushed the weaker she became and the more her revenge fuelled fire dwindled. She no longer had the strength to do what she knew she needed to. But still, she pushed on with the unknown outcome lingering in the back of her mind. She’d gotten this far, she couldn’t turn back now.

As she turned a corner, using a dry tree trunk to keep steady, she saw it. A graveyard of high wooden posts, beaten and battered by the unforgiving coast air, as were the bodies that limply hung from them. Ellie blinked long and hard, the salty wind stinging her already tired eyes.  
“Don’t be dead”, she muttered to herself.  
Heart pounding harder in her chest, Ellie clambered down the dry dunes, the moonlit shadows of the posts edging closer and closer. The first of the posts, which held no body was stained in varying stages of dried blood. The second post was occupied by the body of a young boy no older than seventeen, suspended two metres in the air by his wrists and swaying violently in the strong wind. His bare, bruised chest and torn shorts bore the remnants of a brutal exchange. Ellie shuddered to imagine what this child had endured before his untimely death. She pressed on. Each body she came across was more disfigured than the last. A few of the bodies had begun to rot, the familiar stench filling her lungs as she approached, causing her to recoil. It was clear that these people had been strung up to die and forgotten. 

Before long, Ellie stood in a forest of bodies hung by the pillars. Her breath laboured and she felt a pang of dread. What if Abby really was here? Would she still be alive? If not, would she even be recognisable? A spluttering cough startled her from behind. Tied to a nearby pillar, a young woman with short and ragged blonde hair appeared to be the source of the sound. She was pale, thin and her exposed arms and legs were littered with an array of scars. Although she was clearly malnourished, her body was unusually muscular. Could this be her? Ellie knelt slowly, removing her backpack, opening it to search for a Polaroid picture of Abby for comparison. The woman’s eyes fluttered at the sound of movement nearby. She flinched, as if anticipating pain. When it didn’t come, her eyes slowly opened in confusion.  
“Please…”  
A hoarse cough prevented the woman from finishing. She paused and breathed deeply as her eyes focused on Ellie’s form.  
“It’s… you”.  
At that moment Ellie stopped searching for the photograph. She knew she’d found her. Without any thought or hesitation, Ellie carefully raised herself from the ground and hobbled behind the post. She pulled out her pocket knife and began cutting the rope that held Abby suspended. 

As the rope snapped, Abby fell to the sand below with a hard thud. She struggled to raise herself up, her arms shaking, her weak body long deprived of food and water. A soft moan in the mist told her Lev was still alive. With every fibre in her body, she pushed herself to stand up and staggered towards the source of the noise. Abby reached the post where Lev’s almost lifeless body hung and she reached with trembling hands to untie the rope that bound him. Lev fell to the sand and Abby scrambled to his aid. He was weaker than her, unable to move on his own. She felt the rush of adrenaline and knew this was the moment to act. With immense effort she scooped Lev’s limp body into her arms and struggled to her feet.  
“There are boats down by the shore,” she mumbled in a croaky voice.  
Without thought, Ellie followed as Abby hoisted herself and Lev onto a small ledge that led to the shore. Ellie pulled herself onto the ledge and was immobilised by a surge of intense pain from her side as her body collapsed to the ground. She was hit hard with a memory of Joel. Joel in his last moments of life. The crack of the golf club hitting his –  
Ellie shook her head and squeezed her eyes shut, willing herself back to reality. She wrenched herself up onto the sandy ledge and back to her feet. Abby and Lev were a little ahead and she struggled to keep up her pace, knowing she had to reach the shore as they did. Pushing forward, Ellie could hear the crashing of the waves on the shore as they approached the ocean. She could just see Abby wading into the rapidly rising water and lowering Lev’s limp body into a small, rickety rowboat. As the water came more into view, Ellie began to process her surroundings. The “boats” were not plural. There was only one way off of this beach and that singular boat was her only chance. She was suddenly very aware of why she’d embarked on this suicidal journey in the first place.

Ellie, dropping her backpack in the shallow water, mustered all the strength she could and lunged herself into the water towards Abby who was huddled over the rowboat. In making contact with Abby, Ellie dug her fingernails as far as she could into Abby’s shoulders resulting in a guttural yell from Abby’s chest. Ellie tightened her grip and jerked Abby round to face her before connecting her fist, hard with Abby’s jaw. Abby, taken aback, recoiled and clutched her face with her hands.  
“I’m not doing this”, muttered Abby as she immediately started back towards Lev.  
Ellie, overcome with rage pushed Abby aside and brandished her pocketknife towards Lev’s exposed throat.  
“Fine…”, growled Abby.  
Abby charged at Ellie with full force knocking her onto her back into the shallow water. Abby was strong, even in her malnourished state. Abby’s fists brought terrible pain. Each blow to Ellie’s head brought with it flashes of the bloody golf club smashing into Joel’s-  
“NO”, Ellie screamed. With all her strength she bucked her knees as hard as she could, sending Abby over her head, face first into the water. Ellie spared no time, jumping on Abby’s back, holding her head under the water for as long as she could. Abby writhed and clutched at Ellie’s arms in a panic, unable to claw her way to the surface. Her body growing weaker and weaker as it was deprived of oxygen. Ellie pushed harder, smashing Abby’s face into the sand below the waves. 

“If I ever were to lose you, I’d surely lose myself”

The soft tones of Joel’s singing drifted towards her. Ellie approached the porch cautiously. She and Joel hadn’t spoken in some time. Despite the previous wrenches in their relationship, she didn’t want this to be another to add to the list.  
“You didn’t need to do that”  
Joel looked up, slightly startled. He stood and carefully leaned his guitar against the chair.  
“I know.”  
Ellie fixed her gaze on a moth, fluttering clumsily around the porch light so as not to make eye contact with Joel.  
“I can take care of myself, you don’t need to stand up for me anymore.”  
“I know”, repeated Joel in a sympathetic tone.  
The two stood in silence for a moment, the air between them growing warmer. It was almost as though no time had passed and Ellie felt a surge of affection.  
“Dina…”, Joel started.  
The rage built again in Ellie’s chest.  
“It was just a kiss, It didn’t mean anything”, stated Ellie, matter of factly.  
“Do you like her?”  
Another silence.  
“Seth is a small minded man, he just needs to be told what’s-“  
“That’s not your job”, interrupted Ellie.  
The air was growing thick and it was harder to breathe. She didn’t want to have this discussion.  
“All I know is that Dina would be lucky to have you.”  
Ellie sighed heavily.  
“I mean it,” Joel continued. “I don’t know what that girl’s intentions are but-“  
“And its not for you to assume”, countered Ellie, coldly.  
Joel hesitated, “I know you’ll make the right choice.”

Joel’s words echoed in Ellie’s mind as she forced Abby’s head under the water once more. Abby’s hands were becoming more frantic with every second. Joel’s voice echoed again.  
“I know you’ll make the right choice.”  
Ellie found her grip loosen. In a spit second decision she let go and backed away. Abby burst from the surface of the water coughing and gagging as the sea water was expelled from her lungs. Ellie fell back helplessly into the water, tears streaming. She closed her eyes, accepting her fate. 

Abby took a second to reclaim her normal breathing and without acknowledging Ellie, turned back to face Lev. In that moment, Ellie saw Joel in Abby more than she did in herself. A series of clicks and a piercing screech from the mist among the pillars told Ellie they didn’t have much time. Neither of the two women had the strength to hold off any infected right now.  
“Go. Leave now,” Ellie instructed.  
Abby gave an abrupt nod without looking at Ellie.  
Lev was breathing, but just barely. Abby began climbing into the boat, toppling forwards and collapsing beside Lev. She disappeared from Ellie’s view behind the cracked wooden panels of the boat. A moment passed and Abby hadn’t reappeared. Ellie hoisted herself out of the now scarlet water, retrieved her soaked backpack and waded towards the boat. Another series of clicks, closer this time, made her freeze. She drew a sharp breath. Ellie turned towards the pillars beyond the beach as two disfigured shadows emerged from the mist, twitching violently in an unnatural manner.  
“Clickers,” Ellie scowled, “that’s just great”.  
She swiftly closed the remaining distance between herself and the boat, keeping as quiet as possible.  
“You need to get the fuck out of here,” urged Ellie in a whisper as she peered over the edge of the boat. Abby and Lev’s limp bodies provided no response. Ellie, heartbeat loud in her ears, turned her frantic gaze back to the pillars in time to see the splash as the first of the clickers met the waves on the shore, the other following the sound and close behind. Ellie quickly inspected the small stretch of beach which provided few options for escape.  
“Shit”.  
Untying the boat from its post and throwing her backpack onto the damp wooden boards, Ellie scrambled aboard and seized the oar handles. Pulling hard on the oars, a loud, rough groan escaped Ellie’s mouth as her side throbbed with pain. The infected began to push towards the sound with purpose now, slowed slightly by the force of the waves. Biting her cheek this time to stop herself from screaming, Ellie pulled on the oars again and again until the threat of the infected were no more than small writhing silhouettes in the distance. 

As Ellie slowed to catch her breath, Abby and Lev remained almost motionless within the gently rocking boat, their shallow breaths the only indication they were still alive. Ellie felt any strength she had drain from her arms as the adrenaline rush subsided. She’d never felt exhaustion like this in her life. The empty expanse of sea around her offered no aid. Ellie glanced down at her new crew mates and wondered how she’d strayed so far from her original plan.  
“What the fuck do I do now, Joel?”


	2. Santa Barbara Harbour

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ellie, exhausted and disorientated, has to find a safe place to dock the boat and form a plan of action after unintentionally saving Abby and Lev’s lives.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> EDIT: I’ve tried so hard to insert a picture to the end of this but it’s not happening. Any advice is appreciated! 
> 
> I’ll just leave the image link here for anyone who’s interested in where they are on the map.
> 
> https://i.postimg.cc/xCXgS16H/0-BC75-B00-23-CA-448-F-87-D0-6-D3-EE556-BEBB.jpg

Ellie fished an expired granola bar from her backpack and tore back the faded wrapper. In the chaos of the last few days, she’d realised that she couldn’t remember the last time she’d eaten anything. She was weak and feeling woozy from the energy expelled trying to control the boat in the choppy water. In the past few months she’d only ever eaten when Dina reminded her to. She felt oddly proud of herself for taking the initiative on her own, however the second she swallowed her first bite, the nausea retuned. Whether this was due to her empty stomach or the memory of Dina, she didn’t want to know. She shoved the bar into her pocket and made a mental note to try again later. The water had calmed since they’d departed from the beach in Santa Barbara. Warm, magenta rays of light were beginning to creep over the horizon as the new day crawled to a start. As the boat drifted gently east along the outskirts of Santa Barbara, Ellie was beginning to form something of a plan. She had spent the remaining hours of the night keeping the boat a mile or so from the shore in case any rattlers were on their trail. Now that her mind was clearer and her body was somewhat rested, she knew a decision had to be made. Ellie didn’t want to imagine the outcome if Abby regained consciousness while they were stuck in such close quarters. 

It had proven challenging to scan the coastline in the dark, even using the scope on her rifle, but the morning light creeping in brought hope. Ellie knew her best chance right now was to avoid people, now knowing the type that were residing in Santa Barbara. Having travelled what she thought was far enough away from the rattlers, she began searching for a safe place to dock. In the near distance a massive structure began to form. Long concrete walkways stretched out from the shore line in regimented form. Fishing boats, yachts and dinghies in various stages of disrepair huddled together between the cradling arms of the now visible harbour. Ellie relinquished control of the boat and allowed the waves to guide them closer to the shore. In a matter of minutes, Ellie was close enough to the harbour walls to see the peeling paint and algae stained hull of a docked catamaran. The sails, long salvaged, had left the mast unprotected against the salty wind and water. Imagining the old world and what It must have been like to sail carefree across the ocean on one of these vessels, she hadn’t realised they’d drifted a little too close to the low walls of the harbour. With a massive jolt, their pitiful boat smashed into the concrete. Losing her balance, Ellie gripped the sides of the boat, knocking one of the oars into the water. She watched it sink into the abyss below. With great difficulty, Ellie used the remaining oar to push away from the harbour wall. Ellie’s gaze lingered on the harbour for a moment before scanning the coastline once again. The harbour blended seamlessly onto a beach that stretched no more than a few miles before connecting with a colossal pier. As the pier extended into the water, huge wooden beams held it high above the ground, creating a bridge over a small section of the sandy beach. Ellie gave a sigh of relief. “Bingo.” Although the water was calm, she struggled to manoeuvre the boat towards the pier with just one oar. They finally collided with solid ground and, exhausted once again, Ellie crawled out of the vessel onto the damp sand. After a moment of recuperation, Ellie struggled to her feet and guided the boat under the pier, pulling it as far out of the water as she could. She tightly tied the rope from the boat around one of the wooden posts and began to examine her surroundings.

A small section of the sand under the pier was dry, indicating that the tide wouldn’t come too far in. A shabby tent was pitched in the shadows under the lowest area of the pier. It was large enough to sleep two people and the frayed, discoloured fabric indicated it was most likely abandoned. Ellie approached cautiously, hand hovering over her knife. As she moved closer, the stench of decay filled her nostrils and she lowered her guard. Ellie clicked her flashlight and pulled aside the damp canvas and inched her way into the tent. Upon surveying the contents, Ellie’s gaze fell upon a blood stained blanket covering a mass of what she assumed was a body. She gave it a small kick to be on the safe side. No response. A scratched and battered cooler lay in the opposite corner, almost completely buried in sand. She lifted the lid which detached in her hand. Throwing it aside, Ellie peered into the cooler and emerged with two unopened bottles of water. Whoever left here did so in a hurry. She wasn’t aware of anyone who would leave water behind in this climate. Wrenching open one of the bottles she emptied it quickly into her mouth. The water burned as it slipped down her sandpaper throat. She discarded the empty bottle and reached for the second, quickly unscrewing the cap. She raised the bottle to her lips, her body begging for more. Ellie paused, thinking of Abby and Lev in the boat. Why should she save it for them? They’d only caused more pain and suffering in her life. The more she thought about the more she convinced herself otherwise. Lev was… almost an innocent bystander. She could vaguely recall Lev shooting Tommy in the leg with his bow in the theatre. It had all happened so fast, she wasn’t sure. Even if he had, it wasn’t fatal. Was he acting on Abby’s orders? Did he even know what he was doing? He was just a kid… Abby on the other hand. There was no redemption for what she’d done and Ellie didn’t care to think about how she’d disregarded that and unintentionally rescued her anyway. She made the decision to keep the water for Lev and sealed the lid tightly. Ellie turned and exited the tent, emerging into the morning light now flooding the beach. 

Ellie made her way back towards the boat to plan her next move. Each step brought a dull thud of pain to her side. Her body ached for the remaining water but she pushed on, ignoring her instincts. Reaching her destination, Ellie used the edge of the boat to steady herself. Something wasn’t right. An empty space in the bottom of the boat caught Ellie off guard and quick paced, light footsteps behind her forced her to spin around to face her attacker. As she moved, Ellie collapsed to her knees in agony. A metre or two away, a terrified Lev stood shaking and brandishing a piece of driftwood.  
“Who are you?” Lev demanded in a shaky voice, his torn clothes hugging his skeletal body in the wind.  
He didn’t recognise her. They’d only met once, in tense circumstances and that was so long ago now.  
“I’m… I’m no one really,” Ellie admitted, defeated.  
“Why are you here? How did we get here?”  
Lev’s breathing was becoming heavier and harsher. Ellie contemplated her story. She hadn’t anticipated this situation. Why hadn’t she thought her story through? Even she struggled to grasp the truth of the events of the last two days.  
“I took you from Santa Barbara”.  
“Are you a rattler?” Lev questioned, his eyes frantically searching Ellie’s face for some indication of her intentions.  
“No. I kind of uh… cut you down from those posts… you know… on the beach…”  
Ellie rolled the second water bottle across the sand towards Lev.  
Lev dropped the driftwood and a grin crept across his face as he knelt to pick up the bottle.  
“You cut us down…” he repeated incredulously.  
“Um… yeah. But I was just on my way out I’ll uh… I’ll leave you to it.”  
“Are you kidding? You can’t leave! Abby hasn’t come to yet and I’ve tried, really, but I can’t lift her out of this boat on my own”. Lev indicated towards his skinny frame, shrugging gently.  
“Look, I don’t want any trouble,” Ellie objected, glancing hesitantly towards the unconscious Abby, “I really should get moving.”  
Ellie struggled to raise herself from the damp sand and shuffled her backpack onto her shoulder.  
“Oh… cool.” Lev muttered, feeling disheartened. 

Ellie hobbled towards the seemingly endless beach. She was about to feel the warmth of the early morning sun on her skin as she emerged from under the pier. She hoped a little sunburn would help distract from the now searing pain in her side.  
“Wait! Where are you headed?” Lev called from the boat, curiously.  
Ellie stopped in her tracks. She wasn’t sure how to answer that question. She didn’t know the answer herself. Dina had made her feelings quite clear. She wouldn’t be waiting for Ellie, even if she returned to the farmhouse. Dina would be back in Jackson by now. Ellie couldn’t go back to Jackson either. Tommy would never forgive her if she came back having let Abby live. Where could she go? She wouldn’t be welcome at home. The delay in response prompted Lev to continue.  
“You’re welcome to stick with us if you like?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Promise the next chapter will be longer!)


End file.
